Bush repeats Italian death regret

ROME, Italy (CNN) -- U.S. President George W. Bush has again expressed regrets to Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi over the shooting death of an Italian security agent in Iraq in March.

The agent was escorting an Italian journalist to Baghdad's airport after her release by kidnappers, when their car came under fire from U.S. forces.

Bush and Berlusconi met for dinner on Thursday night.

Giuliana Sgrena, an anti-war journalist who was held in captivity in Iraq for a month, was wounded in the shoulder when U.S. troops opened fire on her car.

The U.S. military contends the car rapidly approached a checkpoint and ignored repeated warnings to stop. Sgrena, a reporter for the communist newspaper Il Manifesto, charged that American forces deliberately fired on the vehicle.

Berlusconi, who denounced the shooting, has said that according to information from the person driving the car, the vehicle was traveling at a low speed and braked very swiftly when a light shone on it.

The incident is still under investigation, said White House spokesman Scott McClellan.

Bush, accompanied by his wife, Laura, is leading a U.S. delegation to the funeral of Pope John Paul II. Also in the group is Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and former presidents Bill Clinton and H.W. Bush.

McClellan said other issues during the meal with Berlusconi were Iraq, Mideast peace efforts and the Ukraine.